The LA Chargers entered Day 3 of the 2026 NFL Draft with seven total picks and used that war chest to move back up in the fourth round. After a stellar Brenen Thompson pick at No. 105, the Chargers traded the No. 206 pick to move up from No. 123 to No. 117. And with the pick, the Chargers took massive Memphis swing tackle, Travis Burke.
Standing in at six-foot-eight (and three-quarters), Burke is one of the biggest tackles in the entire draft class. He has experience playing both left and right tackle and will instantly compete with Trey Pipkins for the swing tackle spot.
It might seem unconventional for the Chargers to pick a dedicated backup as early as the fourth round but anyone who watched the Bolts last season knows why this pick makes sense. Tackle was a dumpster fire of injuries last season and with Burke, the Bolts now have more insurance.
Travis Burke pick shows just how scarred the Chargers are from last season
Both Rashawn Slater and Joe Alt suffered season-ending injuries at various points last season. Slater never played a snap after being injured during training camp, while Alt played just six games.
Slater is the more concerning of the two tackles in regards to long-term health. Ruptured patellar tendons are usually a death wish for productive NFL careers. It's also the second season-ending injury Slater has suffered. Alt's ankle injury, hopefully, was just a one-year issue.
It wasn't just Alt and Slater, though. It felt like every tackle the Chargers brought in to play ended up with some kind of injury. There were points last year where the offensive line protecting Justin Herbert looked like a made-up offensive line on Madden, not a real offensive line.
Burke's experience at both tackle spots is valuable. If he can translate his physical skills to NFL-ready blocking skills then he can outright win the swing tackle job over Pipkins. But either way, the Chargers have two tackles with versatility that they can be confident in.
Alt and Slater have been progressing well from their injuries and should be ready for the start of the 2026 season. In a perfect world, the Chargers wouldn't need to use Burke at all in his rookie season, as that would indicate a clean bill of health for the starting offensive line.
But if push comes to shove, the Chargers have another option to keep the season from snowballing. It might have been an unconventional pick, but it was completely necessary after the disastrous year the Bolts had at tackle last season.
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